


Aftertaste

by jihancheols



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, M/M, alcohol use, mentions of jihan
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-11-20
Updated: 2015-11-20
Packaged: 2018-05-02 12:37:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,825
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5248505
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jihancheols/pseuds/jihancheols
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After midterms, Jeonghan wants to finally relax and have fun with his roommate Seungcheol.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Aftertaste

**Author's Note:**

> literally just thought of this and poured it out. i may come back to edit later.  
> i only write school aus because its all i know.  
> if ur uncomfortable with mentions of alcohol, maybe dont read  
> also may be chaptered at some point who knows

Seungcheol was waiting outside of the lecture hall Jeonghan was taking his midterm in. They had midterms at the same time but Seungcheol had finished his Calculus exam early, so he waited where he knew Jeonghan was still trying to finish up his Psych exam. Seungcheol didn’t have to wait, he’d been finished for what seemed like half an hour by now, but he wanted to walk home with Jeonghan.

Finally, Jeonghan walked out of the classroom looking absolutely defeated. His hair was falling from its ponytail and he had bags under his eyes.  
  
“Wow, that was awful. How’d yours go?” Jeonghan asked as he walked up to the spot where Seungcheol was waiting.  
  
“Yeah, mine was super hard too,” Seungcheol said feigning exhaustion. The truth is, he studied for hours for this exam, even spending a few hours with his professor throughout the past week. He knew he did well on this midterm from all his studying, but he wanted Jeonghan to feel better about maybe not doing so well.  
  
“Let’s go home. I’m so beat from this week,” Jeonghan said, heading out of the building. Seungcheol just nodded and followed along.  
  
Seungcheol and Jeonghan had lived together since sophomore year. They had met in their freshman literature class. Seungcheol was immediately drawn to Jeonghan. He had a beautiful face and the sweetest laugh he ever heard. He vowed to do anything to hear that laugh as much as possible. He sat next to Jeonghan for every class, inviting him to eat in the dining hall. They discovered they both loved soccer and even joined the same club team at the school. From there, they were always close, choosing to live together the next year and then on.  
  
Now it was their senior year and they were just trying to make it to graduation. Jeonghan spent the walk home telling Seungcheol just how unfair his exam had been. Seungcheol just nodded, focused on how the way Jeonghan’s brows furrowed and his hands told a story all on their own. He was enamored with Jeonghan. He had been since they first met. Seungcheol never let Jeonghan know.  
  
He spent a lot of time listening to the others Jeonghan had been interested in. Seungcheol was not the only person who was interested in Jeonghan, of course. Jeonghan had relationships here and there, but Seungcheol only had eyes for him. He listened every time Jeonghan would tell him about his current relationship. Seungcheol heard most about Jeonghan’s long-time friend Joshua. They had been friends since middle school and Jeonghan could never stop talking about him it seemed. Joshua went to a university far from their home town but would visit Jeonghan whenever he had a break. Seungcheol wouldn’t say he was jealous exactly, he got to spend a lot of time with Jeonghan. They were roommates after all, they spent more time with each other than anyone else. But he couldn’t help feeling that he wanted more from Jeonghan.  
  
As they stepped into the lobby of their apartment building, Jeonghan announced “This week was horrible! Let’s get drunk and forget all about it!” looking at Seungcheol with excitement. Seungcheol agreed as they headed towards their apartment.  
  
Seungcheol wasn’t really into drinking. He could drink a beer here and there while watching soccer on TV, but he was never into hard alcohol like the stuff Jeonghan enjoyed. Seungcheol couldn’t handle it anyways. A few shots and he wouldn’t even remember his own name.

When Jeonghan opened their door, he practically threw his bag across the room hoping it would land on their small sofa. Next he threw his coat near their closet and his shoes in another direction. He immediately went towards their kitchen where he would find their tiny alcohol collection.  
  
Seungcheol entered after him, slipping his shoes off carefully at the door and picking up the ones Jeonghan had tossed haphazardly. He set his own coat on a hanger in their closet along with Jeonghan’s that he picked up off the floor. He took his own bag off his tired shoulders and set it next to Jeonghan’s on their sofa. He picked up the remote and turned on the TV.  
  
Jeonghan entered the living room with two shot glasses and balancing a bottle of fireball in his arms as well.  
  
“C’mon Seungcheol, let’s forget about this horrible week! It’s Friday so we don’t have any work tomorrow or anything,” Jeonghan said setting everything down on the table in front of Seungcheol.  
  
Seungcheol was already feeling sick. He did not do fireball. And on some level Jeonghan knew this too, but he was obviously fed-up with their long school week and just wanted them both to finally have some fun.  
  
“I’m gonna start off with some wine instead. You know we still have that bottle we bought weeks ago. I guess now would be a good time to finish that,” Seungcheol said.  
  
“Fine! Be boring,” Jeonghan said while pouring a shot for himself and one for Seungcheol—which he was probably going to drink himself anyways.  
  
Seungcheol went to their fridge and grabbed a wine bottle from the back. He had been trying to finish this thing off for weeks, but never got very far. He was a bit of a lightweight and never could drink too much at once. He grabbed a glass from their cabinets and poured himself a little bit to begin.  
  
Jeonghan was laying on their couch, flipping through channels trying to find something they both could stand. His hair was falling loosely in front of his face and he was in no mood to pull it back in a neat ponytail. Seungcheol always thought Jeonghan looked beautiful with his hair down, but Jeonghan said that Joshua told him he liked it pulled back, so that’s how he usually wore it. Seungcheol wondered if Jeonghan would wear it down more if he just told him that he liked it when it was down. Or would Joshua’s opinion always come before his?

“Ahh, look, the Lake House is on! This movie is so gooood. It’s also kinda fucked up which is why it’s so good. Like the parallel universes and everything. I can’t believe how the ending--” Jeonghan was well on his way to spoiling the movie but Seungcheol didn’t mind. He was never into romance movies like Jeonghan was anyways. He sat on the floor next to the sofa where Jeonghan was sprawled out. Seungcheol noticed that Jeonghan had already blazed through both of the shots. It must be nice to handle alcohol as well as Jeonghan could.  
  
They both sat and watched the movie for a while, Jeonghan throwing back as many shots as he could get in and Seungcheol slowly sipping on his wine. By the time the film ended, Jeonghan was swaying back and forth and releasing constant laughter. Seungcheol didn’t mind when Jeonghan got like this, he enjoyed the sound of Jeonghan’s laughter filling the room.  
  
“Hey, you’re not getting drunk enough! This was supposed to be fun! C’mon you gotta have fun,” Jeonghan whined. He grabbed Seungcheol’s glass and poured some fireball in it, mixing it with the wine. Seungcheol made a gross face because how was that supposed to taste good?  
  
Seungcheol took one sip of the mixture and was appalled at the taste. He really didn’t like liquor and he especially didn’t like it when it was mixed with wine. But he immediately felt the warmth of the alcohol as soon as his lips parted from the glass. People were not meant to mix wine and liquor.  
  
“Woah, I’m so hungry. What do we have to eat?” Jeonghan said as he got up, fell back down, and got back up again to stumble towards to the kitchen.  
  
Seungcheol just stared at him from the floor where he was sipping his unholy mix of alcohol. Jeonghan was really beautiful he thought. Just the way he carried himself—although, now drunk—he was simply ethereal. Seungcheol lost track of how much time he spent staring at his roommate. It must have been a while because Jeonghan was staring back at him now.  
  
“So what do you think?” Jeonghan asked.  
  
“Hm? About what?” Seungcheol answered, snapping back into this dimension.  
  
“About ordering a pizza? We have like, no food,” Jeonghan said now looking back to their freezer which was desolate.  
  
“Yeah sure, I’ll order one,” Seungcheol said. He began moving to get his laptop when he realized it was hard to move.  
  
“No, it’s OK! I can buy it. You always buy the pizza,” Jeonghan argued.  
  
Seungcheol knew Jeonghan never really had that much money. He always offered to buy pizza for the two of them, but Seungcheol knew the money would be better spent on his own groceries.  
  
“Really, it’s OK. I can buy it,” Seungcheol said, as he was still trying to get up off the floor.  
  
“You’re really the best roommate,” Jeonghan said smiling.  
  
Seungcheol was happy that Jeonghan appreciated it, but the word “roommate” set off a ping of heartache as he wished he had said something more akin to “boyfriend” instead. Seungcheol rolled in the direction to where he kept his laptop and was able to focus enough to order them a pizza online. They always tried to find shops that made the biggest pizza. They tried 15 inch pizzas, even 16 inch pizzas. Seungcheol browsed different shops and found one that would make an 18 inch pizza.  
  
“Hey Jeonghan, do you think we could eat an 18 inch pizza?” Seungcheol asked. When he turned his head to ask his roommate, his body went with it, nearly toppling over.  
  
“No, but get it anyways. Let’s try,” Jeonghan answered walking back to the sofa. He was carrying a new bottle of alcohol—vodka. Seungcheol wondered how this kid could drink so much.  
  
Jeonghan poured some vodka in Seungcheol’s glass which no longer contained any wine at this point. They both sat on the floor and waited for the pizza to arrive. Jeonghan told Seungcheol about how his professors were all out to get him and made horrible exams. Seungcheol just nodded and gave his sympathies.  
  
Seungcheol was a good student, always had been. He spent more time studying than socializing. Jeonghan on the other hand, was exceptional in social situations. He could befriend anyone. And most people were happy to be around him. This led to him spending more time out of the house than studying for his classes. Seungcheol in a way wished he had the talent of being sociable. But he was fine just spending his time with Jeonghan.  
  
After who knows how long, Seungcheol’s phone rang which meant their pizza was here.  
  
“Who is it?” Jeonghan slurred, rolling on the floor to try to look at Seungcheol.  
  
“It’s the pizza guy. Our pizza’s here,” Seungcheol responded.  
  
“That’s the best thing I have ever heard,” Jeonghan said, rolling back on his face.  
  
Seungcheol tried to lift himself off the ground, but was met with difficulty. How did he even get this wasted? The minute he did manage to get vertical, he felt slightly nauseous, but the pizza was the priority. He had to make it to the door and get it. For Jeonghan. He couldn’t let him down.  
  
He stumbled to the door and opened it to greet the pizza man, who was less than happy to have to deal with another drunk person on a Friday night. Seungcheol thanked him for his service and carried the pizza back to Jeonghan. Who was excited to see Seungcheol, or at least excited to see the pizza.  
  
The opened the box on the floor and began eating slices. It was a really large pizza and Seungcheol really shouldn’t have bought the 18 inch one.  
  
After a while, Seungcheol finally got the courage—with the help of all the alcohol—to ask “Hey Jeonghan….”  
  
“What?” Jeonghan said, shoving a slice of pizza into his mouth.  
  
“Your friend Joshua, how do you feel about him?” This was the kind of question Seungcheol always had trouble asking Jeonghan sober. He knew they were close, but were Jeonghan and Joshua more than just best friends?   
Jeonghan was always talking about his friend from home and they even posted pictures of each other holding each other close. Seungcheol had to know if Jeonghan was available. He had to know if all his efforts were in vain.  
  
“Joshua?” Jeonghan slurred, “I loooove Josh. He’s the best. He’s my favorite person in the world. He knows everything about me.”  
  
Seungcheol felt his heart break. This wasn’t the way you’d talk about just a friend. They must be dating.  
  
“Why do you ask?” Jeonghan said, not bothering to look at Seungcheol as he was using all his energy to eat the pizza.  
  
“No reason, you just talk about him a lot,” Seungcheol said, not trying to sound hurt.  
  
“Yeah, I really love him. Don’t you have someone like that?” Jeonghan asked, now rolling over to look at Seungcheol.  
  
“Of course,” Seungcheol replied. Jeonghan could never know that person for Seungcheol was him.  
  
They sat in silence for a while. When Seungcheol went to ask Jeonghan something else, he noticed that he had passed out right there on the floor next to a slice of pizza. All that alcohol had to hit him at some point.  
  
Seungcheol just stared at him for a while, thinking about how he would never be his. Finally he decided to give him a blanket because that was gonna be an awful place to sleep, but at least he would be more comfortable if he wasn’t cold.  
  
When he went to get up, he suddenly felt a wave of nausea come over him. Bypassing the blanket, Seungcheol headed straight to the bathroom where he threw up his dinner in the toilet. This is why he didn’t drink hard alcohol. He spent a long time in the bathroom, maybe even falling asleep for a while in there.  
  
When he finally emerged, he noticed Jeonghan was not on the floor, but on his own bed. Seungcheol spent time watching him from the doorway. Watching the way his chest rose up and down with every breath. Watching the way his hair, now completely escaped from the ponytail, fell perfectly on his face. Watching the way his lips were parted so slightly. Seungcheol was in trouble.  
  
Before he could stop himself, he went over to Jeonghan’s bed. He held a hand out to hold Jeonghan’s, just to feel his soft hands. But Jeonghan curled his fingers around Seungcheol’s in his sleep, even pulling Seungcheol closer. Seungcheol couldn’t stop himself in his own drunk state and allowed himself to be guided by Jeonghan into his small bed with him. Jeonghan moved so that Seungcheol could lay next to him. He directed his hand so that Seungcheol’s arm was around his waist. Seungcheol didn’t know how it happened, but suddenly he was holding Jeonghan. The alcohol was making the bed seem warmer and more comfortable than he knew it really was. He gave in, and let himself hold Jeonghan. He moved his thumb against the soft skin that was exposed over his stomach. It felt so right. He wanted to fall asleep every night with Jeonghan in his arms. He moved his face so that it was closer to Jeonghan’s own and his lips ghosted over Jeonghan’s. Before he could place a kiss on those soft lips, those perfect lips, the lips he spent all his time admiring, Jeonghan whispered something.  
  
“This feels so nice. I love you,” Jeonghan said so softly, that if it wasn’t silent in the room, Seungcheol wouldn’t have caught it.  
  
Seungcheol felt so warm. To hear these words from the boy he loved so much. To know this was the way Jeonghan felt too. Just when he thought he didn’t have a chance, he really could be with Jeonghan.  
  
“I love you too, Jeonghan,” Seungcheol whispered in Jeonghan’s ear, turning his face so it rested on Jeonghan’s neck. The smell of his hair filled Seungcheol’s lungs. This was perfect.  
  
“…Joshua…,” Jeonghan sighed, deep in sleep.  
  
Suddenly, the warm feeling that was filling Seungcheol’s chest was now in his stomach. Then Seungcheol realized it was not a warm feeling in his stomach, but it was actually nausea. Seungcheol carefully, but quickly, removed himself from Jeonghan’s side and made an exit for the bathroom, which resulted in a small protest from Jeonghan.  
  
Seungcheol put his hands around the toilet bowl, and once again emptied the contents of his stomach. He wasn’t even sure he was sick from the alcohol, or sick from hearing that name when he thought Jeonghan had finally confessed to him.  
  
He sat next to the toilet for a long time, and eventually gave into sleep right there—not next to Jeonghan in his warm bed, but on the cold, hard floor of the bathroom. Jeonghan was not his.


End file.
